TiN has been widely used as a hard and wear resistance layer on cutting tools. However, due to its relatively poor oxidation resistance at elevated temperatures, the focus has shifted towards more complex ternary and quaternary compounds, e.g., as in the (Ti,Al)N and (Ti,Si)N systems that show improved properties that enables greater cutting speeds, prolonged tool life and machining of harder materials in a wide range of metal cutting applications.
CN 101338411 discloses Zr—Si—N layers grown by co-sputtering of pure Zr and pure Si targets in a mixed argon and nitrogen discharge on substrates to a total thickness of 2 to 3 μm.
EP 1736565 discloses a cutting tool insert, solid end mill, or drill, comprising a body and a coating composed of one or more layers of refractory compounds of which at least one layer comprises a cubic (Me,Si)X phase, where Me is one or more of the elements Ti, V, Cr, Zr, Nb, Mo, Hf, Ta and Al, and X is one or more of the elements N, C, O or B.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,056,602 discloses a cutting tool insert coated with a cubic structured (TiyAlxMe1-x-y)N based layer where Me is one of the elements: Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, W or Si, and: x is between 0.50 and 0.80; the ratio, x/(x+y), is between 0.50 and 0.85; the sum of Ti and Al subscripts, x+y, is between 0.7 and 1.0.
Coating optimization has also been obtained by applying different concepts of multilayers as; alternating Ti and Al containing layers (U.S. Pat. No. 6,309,738), oxygen and non-oxygen containing layers (U.S. Pat. No. 6,254,984), one of the layers stacked in the multilayer consists itself of a multilayer (U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,596), alternating nitrogen content (U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,853) or using one metastable compound (U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,912) or as aperiodic multilayer (U.S. Pat. No. 6,103,357).
WO 2010140958 discloses a cutting tool insert coated with a polycrystalline nanolaminated structure of alternating layers A and B where layer A is (Ti,Al,Me1)N and Me1 is optionally one or more of the elements from group 3, 4, 5 or 6 in the periodic table, layer B is (Ti, Si, Me2)N and Me2 is optionally one or more of the elements from group 3, 4, 5 or 6 in the periodic table including Al with improved cutting performance in applications generating high work temperatures.
JP 2008 302 474 discloses a cutting tool insert coated with an alternating laminated structure comprising a first single layer of (Zr,Si)N and thereon alternating layers of (Al, Cr)N and (Zr,Si)N.
Today industry continuously seeks solutions for economic and high productivity/feed-through manufacturing. To meet these demands there is a need for new materials with advanced properties to improve tool life during operation. Within the metal cutting tool industry, a major part of this effort is focused to improve the wear behavior of the cutting tools by designing the properties of the coating material used in the application. Typically, a high productivity/feed-through cutting process results in a dramatic increase of the tool temperature and hence a coating material with a high temperature wear resistance is essential.